Boscov's Staff Foiled Couple's Shoplifting Attempt, Police Say

Todd R. Hoadley, 43, of Upper Nazareth, is charged with trying to steal about $242 in clothes from Boscov's at the Palmer Park Mall.

Police arrived at a Palmer Park Mall entrance Saturday night and found a man on the ground—held down by loss-prevention officials from Boscov’s. The man, Todd R. Hoadley, 43, of Upper Nazareth Township, allegedly tried to steal about $242 in clothes—mostly summer wear—and had been helped by his girlfriend, who had gotten away, according to the loss-prevention officials and 911 dispatchers. The Boscov’s loss-prevention officials said Hoadley and his girlfriend were taking clothing and putting it into an “aerie” bag, according to a criminal complaint filed by Palmer Officer Kenneth McPherson. The officials stopped Hoadley outside the mall around 8:15 p.m. and held him down by the entrance to the mall’s pet store. They said his girlfriend, …

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Shoplifter Stole from Walmart and Kohl's, Police Say

Colonial Regional Police say they discovered stolen Walmart items while investigating a Kohl's theft.

An alleged shoplifter took one too many chances, Colonial Regional Police say. Nicole M. Campbell, 21, of the 100 block of Kristin Place, Williams Township, is facing retail theft charges after she allegedly stole $158.44 in merchandise from Kohl’s in Lower Nazareth Township. Around 5 p.m. April 4, loss-prevention staff told police Campbell put clothing—worth $158.44—in her purse. She then left the store and was stopped in the parking lot, according to police. Campbell also was issued a citation for retail theft, police say, for allegedly stealing $96.46 in merchandise from Walmart, which is near Kohl’s in the Northampton Crossings shopping center. While investigating the Kohl’s theft, police say, they discovered the stolen Walmart goods. …

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Man Nabbed Trying to Swipe Cologne from Boscov's, Police Say

An Easton man with prior retail theft convictions faces more serious charges after alleged Palmer Park Mall theft.

An Easton man was charged with felony retail theft after he was allegedly caught trying to steal two cologne gift sets from the Boscov’s department store in the Palmer Park Mall. Paul Harold Esposito, 59, of 33 N. Delaware Drive, is facing a felony charge because he had two prior convictions for retail theft, though the most recent was 18 years ago, according to court papers. According to the arrest affidavit, Esposito took an Yves Saint Laurent cologne gift set, valued at $88, and a Polo cologne gift set, valued at $84, during a trip to the store Friday afternoon. Boscov’s loss prevention staff told Palmer Township police that Esposito brought the gift sets to a men’s fitting room and then concealed them under his coat before trying to …

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Thief Stuffed $420 in Merchandise in Orange Tote, Police Say

Khadijha Noone, 18, of Easton, is charged with trying to walk out of the Target in Lower Nazareth with about $420 in merchandise stuffed into an orange tote container.

Police have made an arrest in a September retail theft case in which a female teenager and another female tried to walk out of the Target in Lower Nazareth Township with about $420 in merchandise stuffed into an orange tote container. Court records say store employees stopped the females, including suspect Khadijha Demaris Noone, 18, of Easton, as they left the store the afternoon of Sept. 28, a Friday. But the females fled on foot without taking the merchandise and got away in a black 1998 Volkswagen Jetta. The Target is at 3835 Dryland Way near the intersection of Routes 33 and 248. The records list Noone’s retail theft charge as her first offense. They also list her address as the 800 block of W. Berwick Street, although another listing…

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Turkey Hill Worker Admits Taking Cash, Cigarettes, Court Records Say

Kaitlyn Marie Ballantyne, 20, of Lower Nazareth Township, is accused of stealing about $100 in cash and $400 in cigarettes from a Turkey Hill Mini Market in Hanover Township, Northampton County.

An employee of the Turkey Hill Mini Market just north of Bethlehem is accused of stealing about $100 in cash and $400 in cigarettes from her employer, according to court papers. Kaitlyn Marie Ballantyne, 20, of 501 Daniels Road in Lower Nazareth Township, was allegedly stealing from the store off of Route 512 beginning in December and ending in February, according to the criminal complaint filed by Colonial Regional Police. Ballantyne admitted the thefts and supplied Turkey Hill with a written confession, the affidavit said. Ballantyne was charged with retail theft, theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property, all misdemeanors. She was arraigned before District Judge James Narlesky and released on $7,500 unsecured bail.

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Week in Review

Child Porn Cases, Teacher's Resignation Top Local News

An alleged knife-wielding woman and the installation of a left-turn arrow at routes 191 and 248 also among top headlines.

Christopher Rothrock, 46, has asked a Northampton County judge to reconsider the sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to child pornography charges. Jeffrey Drexler, 23, of Nazareth is accused of downloading child pornography from Ares, a file-sharing network, while using his mother's Internet connection. Stacee Banko, 34, of Lower Nazareth Township, was charged in September with retail theft and receiving stolen property. She was a fifth-grade teacher in the Nazareth Area School District. Motorists, rejoice! The new left-turn arrow at the intersection of S. Broad Street and Easton Road in Nazareth has been turned on. Janice Klimek, 37, of Wind Gap, is charged with simple assault and harassment. Shaun Burke, 32, of Bushkill Township and…

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Nazareth Teacher Resigns After Retail Theft Charges

Stacee Banko, 34, of Lower Nazareth Township, was charged in September with retail theft and receiving stolen property. She was a fifth-grade teacher in the Nazareth Area School District.

The Nazareth Area School Board tonight accepted the resignation of a district teacher charged with stealing from a Lower Nazareth department store—and leaving her 11-year-old daughter behind. Stacee Banko, 34, of the 300 block of Township Line Road in Lower Nazareth Township, was charged in September with retail theft and receiving stolen property. Banko was accepted into the accelerated rehabilitative disposition (ARD) program for first-time offenders and ordered to pay $1,032.50 in fines, according to court records. Her resignation is effective Feb. 25. Banko was a fifth-grade teacher in the Nazareth Area School District, where she taught for 10 years, according to a Teacher Web profile that is no longer available. On Sept. 22, according…

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Boscov's Shoplifter Caught When Bag Broke, Police Say

Palmer Township man charged with trying to swipe items from Boscov's in Palmer Park Mall.

If at first you don’t succeed… Police say a Palmer Township man tried to walk out of Boscov’s with about $260 in items he allegedly stole Sunday afternoon when a bag carrying the items broke and everything fell out. But that didn’t stop the man. He gathered up the items, which included a Blu-ray player and two electric toothbrushes, found several empty Boscov’s bags under a cash register, placed the items in them and again tried to leave the store without paying, police say. He didn’t succeed, however. He was stopped by a store loss-prevention official who kept him in custody until police arrived. Jaspreet Singh Mandair, 40, of the unit block of Ridge Road, was charged with retail theft at the Boscov’s in the Palmer Park Mall. He was …

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Duo Allegedly Tried to Shoplift $2,700 in Clothing from Kohl's

Jon Joseph Njagu, 25, of Kingston is charged with retail theft and criminal conspiracy for allegedly trying to steal $2,754.98 in clothing from Kohl's in Lower Nazareth Township.

“All for one, one for all” was the motto of The Three Musketeers. It apparently wasn’t the motto of a man who allegedly walked out of Kohl’s Department Store with another man and more than $2,700 in clothes they didn’t pay for. A store employee confronted the first man -- both men were in a vehicle. He wouldn’t hand over his identification. Instead, he handed the employee a driver’s license -- of the other man. The other man has been charged. The first man, at least for now, apparently is at large. Jon Joseph Njagu, 25, of the Wilkes-Barre area town of Kingston is charged with retail theft and criminal conspiracy -- both level-three felonies -- for the Jan. 3 incident at the Lower Nazareth Township store. Information attached to a criminal…

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Alleged Hobby Lobby Thief Sought by Colonial Regional Police

An unknown woman with a toddler in tow allegedly stole more than $600 in jewelry-making merchandise from Hobby Lobby in the Northampton Crossings shopping center.

Police are asking for the public's help in identifying an alleged shoplifter who stole more than $600 in jewelry-making merchandise from Hobby Lobby in the Northampton Crossings shopping center. According to Colonial Regional Police, the alleged theft occurred around 5 p.m. on Dec. 17. The woman police are seeking -- pictured to the right -- had a toddler in tow. If you know the woman's identity or have any additional information, call (610) 861-4820 or e-mail tips@colonialregionalpd.org. You can remain anonymous.

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